2010-11 Ladyjack Preview: Forwards
11/4/2010 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Nov. 4, 2010
This is the second of a three-part series taking a glance at the 210-11 Ladyjack basketball team. The defending SLC co-champion Ladyjacks open the season Nov. 12 at North Texas and begin their home season on Nov. 20 against Tulane.
FORWARDS
Returning: Toni Davis, Jordan Ford, Schera Sampson
Newcomers: Annette Davis
NACOGDOCHES, Texas - A pair of senior starters and a junior with a high upside make up the Laydjack forwards for 2010-11 that combined to put up nearly one-third of SFA's scoring output last season.
Seniors Toni Davis and Jordan Ford are the only two returning players to have played in at least 27 games last year and will be expected to be heavy contributors once again this season. Ford had started every game of her career until an illness forced an end to that streak last season, but she still put up better than nine points and nearly five boards per contest in 27 starts last year and averaged more minutes than any other returning player on this year's roster.
"It's great to have someone like Jordan who can not only play either forward spot for us, but we also feel can guard four different positions defensively depending on how the game and lineups dictate," Schneider said. "We really like her length and her quickness and she is someone that can create offensive matchup problems both because of her size and quickness, and because of her ability to step away from the basket and be effective; however, with her length and athleticism, we feel as though the biggest part of her impact will be seen on the defensive side of things."
Schneider expects Davis to contribute with heavy minutes once again after she saw her numbers nearly double as a junior. A physical presence in the paint for SFA, Davis not only does the majority of her damage in the paint, but also at the free throw line. She led the team in both free throws attempted and made last season and shot a solid 65.8 percent,
"Toni is a tremendous rebounder and will probably continue to play both the four and five positions for us, which is what she had also done in her first three seasons," Schneider said. "We feel like she is someone that is on the verge of being a double-double player for us every night."
As for Sampson, she battled back from a midseason injury to put up solid numbers in 16 games a year ago. A junior with high upside, the Austin native has proven that she can play both in the paint and on the perimeter. Sampson averaged 7.2 points in just 11.1 minutes a game off the bench and also finished behind only Tammara Marion with the second-highest three-point percentage of anyone with at least 30 attempts from behind the line. Defensively, she also proved that she has the ability to be an impact player, rejecting 1.3 shots per contest off the bench.
"Schera brings a lot of talent and versatility to our team," Schneider said. "But the first half of the season we feel will be mainly her getting adjusted once again to the game and now to our philosophy since she had some health issues last season, and obviously getting her healthy again is our main priority."
SFA also welcomed a newcomer to the fold this year, with Kansas transfer Annette Davis joining the program; however, the younger sister of Toni Davis will be forced to sit out the 2010-11 season due to NCAA transfer rules before becoming eligible to play in 2011-12.
-SFA-
Monday, Nov. 1 - Guards
Thursday, Nov. 4 - Forwards
Friday, Nov. 5 - Posts
